Letter: Private prisons and inmate escapes

Congratulations to the authorities who captured escaped inmate Keith Soileau. Soileau escaped from a “private facility,” Pine Prairie Correctional Center, owned by LCS Services. The sheriff of Evangeline Parish is concerned about the escape of Soileau from the facility. The Sheriff’s Office does not operate the privately owned facility.

Now that the people of Louisiana have re-elected Gov. Bobby Jindal, I hope this story does not become more commonplace.

You can bet the intrepid governor will try again to make more jails and prisons “private facilities.” He will try to do so and claim we would save money. What really would happen, though, is that Louisiana would get an immediate windfall (prison sales), then a long-term financial drag caused by supporting the new owners in their quest for profits.

What company would purchase a prison without expecting a return on its money?

Where would this return come from?

The taxpayers of Louisiana.

Who would provide oversight to these “private facilities”?

As evidenced by this case, the local sheriff after the “private facility” has allowed an escape.